Forest Clans Prophecies: The Outsider
by Rubyfur
Summary: One cat, guided by misunderstandings and his dark desire for revenge, is aiming to take over the Clans. Chaos breaks out among the Clans as cats in the same Clan fight against each other, and only one cat in FireClan can see through his lies and stop him
1. Allegiances and Prologue

The full moon shown down coldly from the night sky, surrounded by hundreds and thousands of stars. A soft breeze blew across the forest, ruffling the fur of cats as they journeyed through the forest to the island.

A black tom watched from the top of a tree from opposite the island, as the group of cats crossed the small stretch of water separating the main land from the island using a fallen tree.

As the last of them crossed, he glanced around to make sure no more cats were around, then leapt down from the tree he was hiding in and streaked across the log. He climbed another tree again, with a view of the many cats gathered in the clearing, his dark pelt blending in with the shadows cast by the moon in the cooling night.

He watched as the many cats quieten down when one of the cats, an orange tabby, yowled.

He watched as each of the cats on the tree, four of them, spoke respectively.

The black tom narrowed his eyes as the orange tabby she-cat yowled again, and the other cats on the tree leap down, and the cats in the clearing divided into four groups.

Clans, they were called, and gatherings, are meetings once every full moon of the four Clans. ForestClan. FireClan. WindClan. RiverClan.

The black tom had watched enough gatherings to know that the orange tabby was called Mossstar, leader of FireClan.

She had killed his brother, who had joined FireClan not too long ago. His other brother was long gone. Disappeared.

The clearing was empty. The cats had gone home.

The black tom leapt down from the tree into the clearing, pacing as a plan formed in his mind. It has been moons since he had stumbled upon his brother's murderers. He will make them pay. After spying on FireClan and the gatherings, he had a good idea of what to do – and say – to create chaos between the Clans. In fact, that is what he is going to do.

He will set the Clans against each other. They will fight – and when they were weak enough, he will take over. He will rule the four Clans, and avenge his brother.

* * * * *

The tortoiseshell blinked, narrowing her eyes against the bright sun.

"Where am I?" she meowed aloud. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep in the warriors' den.

A mouse appeared from a nearby hollow tree. The tortoiseshell saw it, and instinctively dropped into hunting crouch. She followed the mouse and was so intent in hunting it that she had no idea where the mouse was leading her.

Suddenly, the mouse disappeared into nothingness. The tortoiseshell she-cat let out a shock mew, then looked up.

The earlier bright sun had been covered up by a thick, gray mist. The she-cat shivered slightly.

"Thrushtail?" she meowed, spotting a faint outline of a cat through the mist, then smelling her familiar scent. The she-cat emerged from the mist and stood in front of the tortoiseshell.

She stared at the starry cat, awed by the shimmering of the stars in her fur every time she moved.

"You are dreaming," Thrushtail meowed. "Listen closely, young one."

The tortoiseshell sat down in front of the former ForestClan deputy. "I'm listening."

"The earth will tremble, and the river will run dry. Fires will rage, and the land will become barren. An outsider, will become part of four, pitting member against member, and blood will rain, and the stars will fall. One cat will stay pure, and return the stars to the heavens," Thrushtail meowed.

"W-what does it mean?" the tortoiseshell asked.

The StarClan cat faded, but a pool of water appeared in front of the tortoiseshell. She peered into it.

The still water began to show images, flashing pass quickly, but finally it slowed down, and the tortoiseshell was able to make sense of what was happening in the vision.

The trees were shaking, and huge cracks were opening up in the earth. Then the scene changed. Now wind was blowing across a barren land, where no plant grew. The scene changed again. The river was running dry, and not even a trickle of water was left. Then the tortoiseshell gave a gasp. She recognized FireClan's territory, her Clan's territory. A huge fire was raging across it, and she spotted an orange cat lying lifeless at the edge. Then the last vision showed her a black tom and herself, locked in battle, fighting to the death.

* * *

Allegiances

FORESTCLAN

Leader  
**Rubystar** – dark ginger she-cat with amber eyes

Deputy  
**Thornmask** – dark red tom_, _tinged colour muzzle

Medicine cat  
**Icemask** – tortoiseshell she-cat

Warriors  
**Skywhisker** – light brown tom

**Iceclaw** – white she-cat with blue eyes

**Swiftpelt** black she-cat with dark blue eyes

**Breezefoot** – swift gray tom

**Sapphirestorm** – blue-gray tom with blue eyes  
**Apprentice, Ashpaw**

**Shadowflight** – shadow-gray she-cat  
**Apprentice, Moonpaw**

Apprentices  
**Ashpaw** – silver gray and white tom with blue eyes

**Moonpaw** – pure black she-cat

Queens  
**Brightfire** - light ginger she-cat with blue eyes

Elders  
None.

FIRECLAN

Leader  
**Mossstar** – dark orange tabby she-cat with green eyes

Deputy  
**Hawktail** – brown tom with darker spots

Medicine cat  
**Iceeyes** – gray (with darker flecks) she-cat_  
_**Apprentice, Opalpaw**

Warriors  
**Cherryheart** – tortoiseshell she-cat  
**Apprentice, Maplepaw**

**Fallenleaf** – pale ginger she-cat with blue eyes  
**Apprentice, Orchidpaw**

**Lionstorm** – light orange tom with green eyes **  
Apprentice, Galepaw**

**Rainflower** – blue tabby she-cat

Apprentices  
**Opalpaw** - cream-coloured she-cat

**Maplepaw** - light gray she-cat

**Galepaw** - golden tabby she-cat with hazel eyes

**Orchidpaw** – tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Queens  
**Battlesong** – golden she-cat with blue eyes

Elders  
None.

WINDCLAN

Leader  
**Sootstar** – dull gray tom

Deputy  
**Nightheart** – black she-cat with green eyes  
**Apprentice, Foxpaw**

Medicine cat  
**Iceweed** – gray and white she-cat  
**Apprentice, Ravenpaw**

Warriors  
**Fennelheart** - long-legged gray she-cat

**Spiritsoul** - jet-black tom with amber eyes_  
_**Apprentice, Rustpaw**

**Dawnflower** – beautiful pale gray she-cat

Apprentices  
**Foxpaw** - orange tom with blue eyes

**Rustpaw** - reddish-brown she-cat

**Ravenpaw** - dull gray she-cat with amber eyes

Queens  
**Starlingclaw** – small dark gray tabby she-cat

Elders  
**Airlion** - light brown she-cat

RIVERCLAN

Leader  
**Deathstar** – black tom with blue eyes

Deputy  
**Iceheart** - silver-blue she-cat

Medicine cat  
**Frostpelt** - white she-cat_  
_**Apprentice, Russetpaw**

Warriors  
**Blacktail** - black and white tom with amber eyes

**Blizzardstorm** - white she-cat with blue eyes  
**Apprentice, Oakpaw**

**Stormcrow** - dark gray tom with blue eyes  
**Apprentice, Mosspaw**

**Swiftfoot** - ginger and white she-cat

**Ravenwing** - all black she-cat with blue eyes

Apprentices  
**Oakpaw** - dark brown tom with blue eyes

**Moonpaw** - dark brown she-cat

**Russetpaw** - black and white she-cat

Queens  
**Spottedcloud** – tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes

Elders  
None.


	2. Chapter 1

A pair of amber eyes glinted brightly in the night. The tortoiseshell she-cat guarding the camp jumped as she heard the sound of a twig breaking. "Who's there?" she meowed sharply, a little afraid.

She took a step backwards and crashed into someone. Letting out a yowl of challenge, she whirled around to face the cat.

"Fallenleaf!" she gasped as she recognized the light ginger pelt of her friend.

"Of course it's me, who did you think it was?" Fallenleaf asked in an annoyed tone.

"I-I thought you were an intruder," the tortoiseshell murmured and stared at her paws.

"Cherryheart, what happened?" an orange tabby she-cat with moss green eyes appeared and leapt onto a branch on a blackened tree.

The tortoiseshell turned to face her leader and took a deep breath. "I thought Fallenleaf was an intruder," she meowed.

Cats were appearing from the dens in the camp, talking among themselves.

"Mousebrain!" one of the warriors snapped. "Other cats have had a tiring day today, and need to sleep. Couldn't you scent that it was Fallenleaf?"

"That's enough, Lionstorm," a brown tom with dark spots glared at the light orange warrior.

Maplepaw looked at Cherryheart with wide eyes. Her eyes narrowed as she heard Galepaw's sarcastic comment about Cherryheart.

"Don't you talk about my mentor like that!" Maplepaw hissed and launched herself on top of her sister.

Cherryheart sighed as the kits' mother went to pull them apart.

"But Battlesong," she heard Galepaw's protest. "She's a senior warrior!"

"Cats make mistakes," Galepaw and Maplepaw's sister, Orchidpaw, mewed from where she sat, outside the apprentices' den.

Galepaw quieten down and stalked off to the apprentices' den. Orchidpaw followed her. Her mews reached Cherryheart, but she didn't listen. She glanced down at her paws, embarrassed.

"I'll take over for tonight," Fallenleaf meowed, padding up to her. "You'd better get some rest."

"I'll guard the camp, as well," Lionstorm's sister, Rainflower meowed, coming up from behind Fallenleaf.

Cherryheart meowed her thanks and padded into the warriors' den. She had a strange dream a few days ago, and she couldn't shake off the feeling that someone was watching every single FireClan cat. Then she realized that she still had not told Iceeyes or Mossstar about the dream. As she blinked in the darknses, she decided to tell the medicine cat about the dream tomorrow.

In the forest, the cat who was peering at the commotion in FireClan camp backed away into the dark. At the same time, Cherryheart, falling asleep in the warriors' den remembered that Fallenleaf had blue eyes, and not amber.

* * * * *

"Cherryheart? Wake up!" someone prodded the tortoiseshell warrior with a paw. Cherryheart blinked open her eyes. Hawktail stood over her, paw raised. "All the cats in the camp are awake already!"

Cherryheart sat up quickly and washed herself swiftly. "Is it near sunhigh yet?"

"Just about," Hawktail meowed. "You are due on hunting patrol with Lionstorm and Galepaw. Bring Maplepaw as well," he meowed before padding out.

Cherryheart groaned. The last thing she needed was to be reminded of yesterday's inccident by Lionstorm and his apprentice. She sighed and padded out of the den to look for Maplepaw.

Lionstorm and Galepaw were eating near the fresh-kill pile. Lionstorm looked up with a slight smirk, while Galepaw turned away from Cherryheart. She shrugged and took a mouse for herself.

Maplepaw padded up to her and sat down, ignoring Galepaw and took a vole. She finished it in a few gulps and announced, "I'm ready to go."

Lionstorm scowled. "We are not. So wait."

Cherryheart buried the remains of her fresh-kill and meowed pointedly, "I am. So see if you can catch up with us."

"We'll see who catches the most prey then," Lionstorm growled. "Starting off early doesn't mean catching the most prey."

"Fine," Maplepaw snapped, obviously still angry at Galepaw and her mentor.

She glanced at her mentor. Cherryheart nodded, then raced out of camp, Maplepaw following behind.

* * * * *

By the time Lionstorm and Galepaw got back during, Cherryheart and Maplepaw were already eating another piece of fresh-kill.

"We caught these," Galepaw mewed, pushing forward a couple of mice, a vole and a starling.

"And we caught these!" Maplepaw scoffed, flicking her tail towards a separate pile. It was almost half the size of the main fresh-kill pile.

"Alright, I guess you win," Lionstorm meowed, resigned.

Galepaw scuffled her paws, looking at the ground as if she wanted to say something. Maplepaw narrowed her eyes and stalked off with a plump vole in her jaws towards Mossstar's den. Cherryheart shrugged and padded to Iceeyes' den, remembering the dream.

"Iceeyes?" Cherryheart called, peering through the bramble bush.

"Yes?" came a reply. A gray she-cat looked up from where she was sorting herbs.

"I've had a dream." Cherryheart meowed.

"Tell me about it," Iceeyes meowed, flicking her tail for Cherryheart to sit in front of her.

There was a sort of passageway in the middle of the bramble bush, and it led to a sheltered area. An oak tree grew there, and the branches were low-growing and dense. Iceeyes kept her herbs among the roots.

Cherryheart cleared the herbs away carefully with her tail, then sat down. She began describing the dream to Iceeyes.

When she finished, the medicine cat was silent. "I've had that dream as well, while at the Moonpool," she meowed at last.

Cherryheart was startled. "Didn't you tell Mossstar? How come the Clan didn't know anything?" she asked.

Iceeyes gave her a funny look. "Of course I did. She didn't tell the Clan. Both of us knew that the Clan would panic."

"You don't have to worry about it, Cherryheart. For the moment, at least."

If only she knew, Cherryheart thought desperately as she dipped her head and padded out of the medicine cat's den. As long as the prophecy's meaning is unknown, FireClan is in danger. Why did StarClan send the prophecy to me? I am not a medicine cat, nor a leader!


	3. Chapter 2

Mossstar padded through the forest silently. She was out alone hunting, and enjoying the peace and quiet. She pounced on a mouse and killed it with a bite, then buried it with the other prey she had caught.

The wind changed directions and the FireClan leader stood erect, scenting the air many times to be sure. Then she raced off into one direction.

As she rounded a tree stump, she crashed into a black tom. Leaping backwards a step, she flattened her ears and glared at him.

"Who are you? You don't smell like any of the Clans," she growled.

"My name is Darkclaw. I am a…loner as you would call," the black tom introduced himself.

Mossstar looked the cat over. Darkclaw had a sleek black pelt with a red stripe down the middle of his fur, and amber eyes. He looked well-fed and his pelt was neatly groomed and clean. Clearly, this loner had been feeding on FireClan's prey for the past few days, or even weeks.

"How long have you been here?" the orange tabby asked, relaxing a little.

"A week," Darkclaw meowed.

"None of our patrols have scented you before."

"I lived on a tree, and only come down to hunt at night."

"How did you know of the Clans?" Mossstar asked curiously.

"I heard some mutterings from your warriors about WindClan, or RiverClan. I can't be sure. I was in my tree, eating a mouse when a patrol went by," Darkclaw meowed.

Mossstar nodded thoughtfully. This could be the chance to recruit more warriors for the Clan. "Would you like to join the FireClan?"

The black tom seemed startled by the question. "Why would you ask me to join?"

Mossstar looked at her paws, as if ashamed to admit that FireClan lacked warriors. "Well, FireClan needs warriors."

"I will consider your offer. I know where the camp is, so once I've made my decision, I will send word by one of your warriors, or go to the camp myself," Darkclaw meowed.

Mossstar nodded. She turned and started to pad back to FireClan camp, picking up her prey on the way. Darkclaw narrowed his eyes then leapt away into the shadows.

* * * * *

Dropping the fresh-kill onto the fresh-kill pile, Mossstar made her way to the blackened tree. A fire had swept through this part of the forest a long time ago, before any living cats could remember. The blackened tree was the only reminder of what had happened before.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Flame-branch for a Clan meeting!" she yowled.

When all the cats had assembled, she announced, "I have found a loner named Darkclaw in our territory."

Before the other cats could say anything, Mossstar went on. "I have invited him to join the Clan. We need warriors in FireClan," she added.

To her surprise, the cats kept quiet after her announcement. Mossstar narrowed her eyes in suspicion, but closed the meeting and jumped off the Flame-branch.

"If you are asking me the reason why there were no protests to the acceptation of this Darkclaw, the reason is that they are all tired of the extra work they have to do in camp," Iceeyes meowed when she saw Mossstar looking for her. "We are short of warriors," she admitted.

"Then I hope he does come," the FireClan leader meowed.

"Cherryheart had the dream," Iceeyes mewed, changing the subject abruptly. "She spoke to me about it at sunhigh."

Mossstar looked up in surprise. "Then, she is the cat who will stay pure?"

"Who knows? StarClan does not tell us everything. If they do, will we survive on our own?" Iceeyes reasoned, sorting out the herbs again.

Mossstar flexed her claws angrily. "StarClan rule the forest. Why do they send us this danger? Do they want to see us destroyed?"

"Mossstar, you don't understand. StarClan do not rule the forest. They send omens and dreams to medicine cats to prepare us for danger ahead that we might meet. They watch, but they do not interfere," Iceeyes meowed, pausing to look up at her leader. "If they did, will we truly be free? If StarClan wanted to destroy us, why not just keep silent instead of warning us about the coming danger?"

Mossstar sheathed her claws angrily. She stalked out of the den and headed into the forest again. She needed to be alone, for now.

* * * *

A cold breeze ruffling her fur woke Cherryheart. She stretched stiffly and looked outside. Dawn was just breaking, and many cats inside the den were beginning to wake.

Beside her, Fallenleaf stirred. Cherryheart prodded her friend before she fell asleep again. "Fallenleaf is quite tired these days," Rainflower commented from her nest on the other side of the nest. She turned to lick a few scraps of moss from her fur.

"No cat can blame her," Cherryheart mewed. "She went on most of the hunting patrols so that every cat in the Clan could eat."

"I'm not saying I blamed her," Rainflower protested. Cherryheart slid between the branches and into the clearing.

"Mossstar!" she called. "Has the dawn patrol left yet?"

"No, would you like to lead one?"

Cherryheart dipped her head in assent. "Coming?" she asked Rainflower who had just emerged from the den.

"As soon as I grab a mouse."

Cherryheart padded over to the apprentices' den. "Maplepaw?" she called.

"She went on hunting patrol with Lionstorm and Hawktail," Orchidpaw, who was awake, answered.

"Oh," Cherryheart meowed. "Do you want to go on dawn patrol?"

Orchidpaw looked up with hopeful eyes. "Can I?" she mewed.

Cherryheart let out an amused purr. "Of course you can." Thinking fast, she added, "After all, Fallenleaf will be coming as well. You'll be stuck at camp doing nothing if you don't come."

Orchidpaw stood up eagerly and followed Cherryheart out of the den.

"I'll go get Fallenleaf," Cherryheart mewed and padded back into the warriors' den.

"Fallenleaf, dawn patrol," she meowed as she peered into the den.

Fallenleaf sat up in her nest. She licked a paw and drew it over one ear, then stood up. "Let's go."

Cherryheart backed out of the den and flicked her tail to summon Orchidpaw and Rainflower. She padded out of camp and veered towards the border they shared with RiverClan.

They paused a few fox-lengths from RiverClan's territory. Cherryheart sniffed the air and prodded a clump of bracken.

"Tell me what you can scent," Fallenleaf meowed to Orchidpaw.

"RiverClan cats, fairly fresh. A patrol must have gone by," Fallenleaf's apprentice mewed, parting her jaws slightly to scent the air. "A couple of Twolegs, quite stale though." Then the apprentice curled her lip. "And there's a stench of something, I don't know what it is."

Fallenleaf tasted the air. She stiffened as she recognized the smell. "Cherryheart," she called to the she-cat a few tail-lengths further along the border. "I think we have a badger in our territory."


	4. Chapter 3

**Sorry for the long wait! A short chapter cause I didn't want to get into too much details of the battle.**

Fur bristling, Cherryheart scented the air. The wind was blowing towards them, and she tasted the strong reek of badger from the wind.

"It's heading into our territory," she hissed. She whipped around. "Orchidpaw, run back to camp and fetch reinforcements."

"Wait." Rainflower stepped forward. "I think the four of us will be able to deal with it. There's only one badger anyway."

Cherryheart looked at Orchidpaw's excited expression and sighed. No doubt the apprentice was looking forward to her first battle. "Alright then, let's go."

The other three cats leaped after her as she sprang forward, following the scent trail. They didn't follow it for long before catching sight of the black and white creature in a small clearing ringed by rocks. As they pounded into the clearing, the badger spun around and let out a roar. Orchidpaw stumbled in her stride and nearly fell.

Yowling a challenge, Cherryheart ran to the side of the badger before leaping onto its back. Her claws met the creature's coarse fur and sank deep into the flesh. The badger reared, trying to throw her off. The FireClan warrior tried to maintain her hold, but was flung off, landing sprawled a few tail-lengths away.

Fallenleaf darted forward with Rainflower and Orchidpaw close behind. She ducked under the badger's paw and landed a couple of blows on the side of the badger's flank before leaping away. "Keep moving, Orchidpaw!" she called as the apprentice narrowly dodged a blow from the badger that would have snapped her spine.

Cherryheart got to her paws, shaking her head to clear it. As Rainflower pulled away after slashing the badger's flank, Cherryheart ran in and raked her claws across the badger's eyes, blinding it. Then she leaped back as another cat darted in.

The badger began to weaken while the cats continued to take turns to attack the badger. Cherryheart felt triumph flow into her veins as she bit down hard on a badger paw. She let out a screech and let go as another paw swiped at her, leaving bloody trails down her left shoulder. The she-cat backed away a safe distance and sank to the ground.

"Cherryheart!" she turned around to see Hawktail and his hunting patrol bursting into the clearing. Lionstorm and Maplepaw let out snarls and launched themselves at the badger. Hawktail slowed to a stop beside Cherryheart.

She dipped her head to the deputy. "It's fortunate that you came," she meowed. "The badger was getting weaker, but we are all injured and tired."

"We heard fighting and scented badger," Hawktail replied. "In fact, it was Maplepaw who –"

"Cherryheart, watch out!" Lionstorm cut into Hawktail's words. She turned to see the once again blinded badger lumbering towards her, slashing at anything and everything in its path. It seemed to be trying to escape.

Then she realized what Lionstorm meant – the badger was heading her way. As Hawktail leaped away, she heaved herself to her paws and tried to run, but sharp pain lanced through her right shoulder as she put her weight on it. "Hawktail!" she gasped. "Help me!"

Hawktail turned to see Cherryheart struggling to move, not realizing that she was hurt until now. He moved to help, but he could see that he was too far – the badger would reach Cherryheart before him.

Cherryheart sensed someone landing behind her before she was shoved forward roughly, falling a few tail-lengths away. Then a loud yowl pierced through the forest, sending several birds into the air. She looked back.

"Great StarClan, _no_."

A spotted brown blur sped past her. Hawktail leaped over the fallen FireClan warrior and snapped at the badger, driving it back. Rainflower joined him in the attack, furiously fighting to avenge her brother. Orchidpaw limped into view, hind leg bleeding, supported by Maplepaw. Fallenleaf raced past them and sprang at the badger.

Cherryheart crawled painfully forward to the warrior lying on the ground. Blood was spilling out of the gash in Lionstorm's flank. He coughed.

"Lionstorm!" she had thought he was dead. Now she frantically scooped up dried leaves from the forest floor and pressed it against the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. He opened his eyes and coughed again, before his whole body went limp.

Cherryheart strained her ears to listen for breathing over the sound of the battle. Lionstorm was breathing, but barely. They had to get help for him immediately.

She turned around. Then the second tragedy happened.

The warrior made no sound at all as the blunt claws pierced the throat, crumpling to the ground.

**Cliffie! Review please =D**


	5. Chapter 4

**Short chapter. I'm out of inspiration!  
Thank you Mystik Shadows for the review! **

No one with the exception of Cherryheart saw what happened until moments later.

"Hawktail!" Maplepaw yowled in disbelief, stopping in her tracks. Her sister froze as well, staring at the fallen warrior.

A roar from the badger reminded the other cats that it was still around. Rainflower and Fallenleaf drove it into the forest as Maplepaw and Orchidpaw pelted back towards their father.

Shock pinned Cherryheart's paws to the ground, and she watched in dismay as Orchidpaw let out a grief-stricken yowl, announcing the arrival of a new StarClan warrior.

Rainflower was suddenly beside her, anxiously asking, "Is Lionstorm alright?"

The she-cat snapped back to her senses and sprang to her paws. "He was still breathing just now. But we'd better get him back to camp fast, or he might not make it."

"Rainflower and I will take him," Fallenleaf padded up to her. She flicked her tail towards Cherryheart's shoulder wound. "I'll be able to support him better. Stay here with the apprentices – I don't think they are quite ready to leave yet."

Cherryheart nodded, then stepped back as Rainflower and Fallenleaf headed back to camp with Lionstorm. She turned and padded towards the body of Hawktail, bowing her head. Slowly, she reached forward and touched the blood-soaked fur with her nose, murmuring, "You were a great deputy, Hawktail."

The warrior could not bear to look at the body of her Clanmate, and she glanced away, giving the two apprentices time to mourn. "Let's bring him back to camp for a proper vigil," she meowed to the two apprentices after some time, getting to her paws.

Cherryheart's head was bent low all the way back to camp, not looking up even when the grieved cries of each FireClan cat rose and merged into a single, mournful cry as they entered the camp with the body of the deputy.

After laying down Hawktail in the center of the camp, Cherryheart backed away a few steps and sat down, still looking down at her paws.

A pair of dark orange paws appeared in her vision, and Cherryheart looked up to see her leader, eyes dull with sorrow at the lost of a faithful deputy and loyal warrior.

"Are you alright, Cherryheart?" she asked quietly.

Cherryheart shook her head, glancing down at her own paws again. She heard Mossstar sigh.

"Get some rest after Iceeyes sees to that shoulder wound." With that, the orange tabby padded away, towards Hawktail's body.

Cherryheart continued to stand there, head down, until the scent of Thrushtail wreathed around her. "_The outsider has done this_," her voice whisperedgently in the tortoiseshell's ear.

"Cherryheart?" the tortoiseshell looked up and blinked. Thrushtail's scent faded away, to be replaced by the medicine cat Iceeyes.

"I'm okay," she meowed dazedly. _Who is the outsider?_

Iceeyes gave an impatient snort. "No, you are not. That shoulder wound of yours looks like it's already infected." Gently, the medicine cat guided Cherryheart into her den, where Opalpaw was bending over Lionstorm.

"His breathing is stable," the medicine cat apprentice mewed.

Iceeyes let out a sigh of relief. "That's good. Keep monitoring him."

Cherryheart sank into the moss nest beside Lionstorm, glancing over once, then licked up the poppy seeds that were placed in front of her. Soon, she her eyes began to close, and she fell into a tranquil sleep.

But her dreams were not calm for long, and they grew dark and uneasy. Once, Cherryheart opened her eyes and saw Thrushtail padding towards her. "The outsider is plotting," she whispered ominously. "He will strike again soon."

When she blinked again, she saw only the neatly arranged herbs in the medicine cat's den, the rapidly dimming sky outside, and heard Lionstorm's breathing beside her. Confused, Cherryheart puzzled over what Thrushtail told her for a long time, before she fell asleep again.

* * *

**I'll most probably update The New Cat before updating this again. Also, I'm working on two other stories which I will not be posting here yet .**


	6. Chapter 5

The black tom padded through the forest confidently. As he reached the FireClan camp, he checked his pace, then entered the camp slowly, placing his paws forward hesitantly. He stopped and looked around the camp.

Many cats stared at him, pausing in their activities. Within moments of his entrance, the camp was entirely silent, all the cats watching him suspiciously. A tortoiseshell she-cat stepped out from the crowd. She was limping slightly, and the tom could smell the stale scent of blood, but the she-cat was trying to walk as if she was perfectly alright.

She stopped in front of him, scenting the air to see if he was alone.

"Who are you, and what business do you have in visiting FireClan?" she questioned.

"I came to see Mossstar, leader of FireClan," the black tom replied, his voice faltering slightly.

"It's alright, Cherryheart. I know him." Mossstar emerged from her den, beckoning the visitor towards her.

The she-cat stepped back, acknowledging her leader's presence and words with a dip of her head. Then she padded away, towards a sharp and sweet smelling scent, which the black cat noted that came from within a gorse bush. _That must be one of the dens where the cats live in,_ the cat thought.

As the visitor disappeared into Mossstar's den, Cherryheart flopped onto the mossy nest in the den.

Iceeyes looked at her reproachfully. "You shouldn't be moving around so much," she meowed disapprovingly.

Cherryheart grunted. "He was a stranger. He could be planning an attack on the camp for all we know."

"You may be the deputy now, but you are still injured. You need to avoid moving around too much," Iceeyes meowed, turning to get cobwebs to stop the bleeding from the wound that had opened again.

The new deputy winced, remembering the ceremony the night before. Iceeyes hadn't allowed her to go further than the entrance of the medicine cat's den when Mossstar called the meeting, so she sat there, listening intentively.

When the FireClan leader announced her choice of deputy, Cherryheart was stunned.

"Mossstar," she called wildly, heart fluttering in panic. "I can't be deputy."

Every cat in the Clan that hadn't turned to look at her when the announcement was made now stared at her as well.

"Why not?" Mossstar questioned.

"Because…because I have yet to recover from the fight," she meowed desperately.

"I'm sure the rest of the warriors will be able to sort out the patrols among themselves for a few days," the leader meowed with an impatient flick of her tail.

"Yes, Mossstar," Cherryheart bowed her head in embarrassment. Her heart fluttered in panic.

"This may hurt a little," Iceeyes' voice brought Cherryheart back to the present. The medicine cat pressed the marigold pulp against the wound firmly. There was a sting, but it was gone in a moment.

Fallenleaf peered into the den as Cherryheart settled into her nest. "How are you feeling, Cherryheart?"

"Quite alright," she replied, tucking her tail beside her.

"I brought some fresh-kill for you and Iceeyes," the ginger warrior padded into the den with a mouse and a vole. "Opalpaw has eaten," she mewed to Iceeyes.

"Alright, thank you, Fallenleaf," the medicine cat mewed. Fallenleaf left the fresh-kill beside Cherryheart and turned to leave.

"Fallenleaf!" Cherryheart called when the she-cat was out of the den.

"Yes?" the pawsteps stopped and Fallenleaf looked back into the den.

"Do you mind taking the training of Maplepaw while I'm in the medicine cat's den?" she asked.

Fallenleaf nodded. "Sure, no problem."

As the warrior padded away, Cherryheart hooked the vole in front of her with an extended claw.

Swallowing it in a few bites, she looked up to see that the mouse was still lying untouched at Iceeyes' paws. There was a distant look in her eyes as she gazed out of the den.

"What are you thinking about?" Cherryheart asked, her head tilted slightly.

Iceeyes blinked, and turned to look at her. "Oh, nothing, really. I just…remembered that there was a herb that could…somehow speed up the healing of a wound, as one could say. The plant used to be quite common, but when I was an apprentice, FireClan territory was the only place where it could be found. It saved a lot of lives. My mentor died before he could pass on everything to me."

Cherryheart twitched her whiskers in sympathy. "Couldn't he tell you when you were sharing tongues with StarClan at the Starpool?"

Iceeyes sighed, looking out of the den again. "It was Thrushtail who was in your dream, wasn't it?"

Understanding dawned on Cherryheart. "Where did…FireClan's ancestors go?"

"All of StarClan left. Only one chose to stay."

"Thrushtail?" Cherryheart guessed.

Iceeyes shook her head. "Thrushtail was still a young warrior when it happened." The medicine cat crouched down and began to eat the mouse. "Rushtail was the newest addition to StarClan's ranks. She died saving her apprentice from a fox."

"Why did they leave?"

Iceeyes hesitated. "They were tired of everything," she meowed at last. Cherryheart could sense that Iceeyes was hiding something, but she only nodded and shifted into a more comfortable position.

Cherryheart closed her eyes and waited for sleep to come. It wasn't a long time before it did, but before she drifted off, she heard Iceeyes whisper, "Brambleflight."

* * *

**The part about StarClan didn't happen on my site, but I had to explain why it was a ForestClan cat that came to Cherryheart and not a FireClan cat. **

**Read & Review! ^^**


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